A New Knight
by Jam-Kiske
Summary: 18 year old Carrie has always dreamed of being a Holy Knight. Her day has come...
1. First Impressions

Note: Hello! This is my first Guilty Gear fic so don't be too harsh if I mess stuff up. Also, I only have Guilty Gear X2 so I don't know story stuff as well as others do. And I'm probably going to use character POV a lot so make sure you realize when the POV changes so you don't get confused. Lastly, don't get mad at all the stuff I assume.

Disclaimer/Claimer: I don't own Guilty Gear, its characters, its concepts, or any of its stuff. It belongs to Daisuke and Sammy. However, I made up the character Carrie Goldman so she's mine.

A New Knight

Step 1: First Impressions

By: HitokiriBattosaiess

(Carrie's POV)

I cautiously walked through the doors holding the paper in my hands. No, not just any paper the application so that I could finally join the Holy Knights. "Hello," my thoughts were interrupted by a kind voice. I looked up to see the speaker, a young looking man with blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing the standard Holy Knights' jacket.

"Oh, hi," is said, already embarrassed, " I came to take the final test for entering the Sacred Order," I rushed through my words.

"Was your application accepted?"

"Yep!" I said and waved the page around, proving myself.

"All right," He said calmly, "My name is Ky Kiske, and I'll be asking you some questions before you take the physical test. It-"

"Physical test?" I found myself hoping that it wouldn't involve push-ups.

"Yes. We have to make sure that you can act in combat situations so that you don't get hurt. So-"

"So you have to see if I can fight?"

"Exactly," he said, not seeming to realize that I'd interrupted again, "First question, what is your name?"

(Ky's POV)

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" the young girl before me suddenly erupted.

"What?" I couldn't find any reason for her to be apologizing.

"I didn't tell you my name! That is so rude! Sorry, sorry, sorry!" she started bowing at every 'sorry,' dark brown hair falling all over her face.

"Would you answer the question please?" I couldn't help but give her a strange look.

"Oh, sorry, sorry, sorry," she started bowing again.

"Ahem."

"Oh, yeah… I'm Carrie. Carrie Goldman," she stuck out her hand, which I shook; now impressed, at her politeness. "Nice to meet you Mr. Kiske," she grinned goofily as she shook my hand.

"Um, you can just call me Ky if it makes you feel more comfortable, Miss Carrie," I said after I shook her hand, damp from nervous perspiration.

"And you can just call me Carrie!" she said, the goofy grin changing into a grateful smile.

"All right, Carrie. Now, let's move on. How old are you?"

"I am 18 years of age! Just old enough for se-" she stopped mid-sentence, "Sorry, sorry, sorry!" she started bowing again.

I was beginning to get the impression that Carrie was a tad immature for her age. So I said, "You're 18. Old enough to be responsible an mature, right?"

"Yeah," her face brightened, "Thanks for clearing that up Ky!"

"Sure," it was nice to know that Carrie had realized that she had spoken inappropriately, "Last question," I found myself hoping that she would redeem herself with a good answer this time, "Why do you want to join the Sacred Order of the Holy Knights?"

"Oh," she said, finally sounding sure of herself, "I want to be a Holy Knight so that I can change the world and make sure that there's no more children born into war!"

I found myself staring in wonderment. Her answer was perfect, and it wasn't one of those 'to bring peace and justice' answers that came straight from a book. "Wow," I said wanting to express my astonishment aloud, "Excellent answer. Now you wait here for a while, and then you'll take the physical test."

"OK! Thanks so much!"

"For what?" I didn't feel like I had done any favors for the girl.

"Being there I guess, see ya!" she smiled brightly as I turned to walk away.

(Carrie's POV)

As the wonderful man named Ky Kiske walked away, I felt myself begin to relax. Whether this worked out or not, I would be forever grateful to him for helping me out and being so kind and understanding.

As I waited, I reanalyzed everything that had just happened. I probably freaked him out with my apologies and disturbed him with the whole 'sex' thing. (;) Great, two out of three questions wrong. I sighed, sat in one of the chairs in the lobby and put my head in my hands, staring into my lap.

Great, I continued my pessimistic train of thought, just when I meet someone nice who I think I could get along with I have to act stupid and make him think I'm an idiot. There's no way they'll let me be a Holy Knight after that. All that hard work and waiting for nothing. My life dream crushed, forever.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps approaching. I looked up and saw Ky walking towards me. I tried to smile because I didn't want him to worry about me, though I'm not sure if it came out right.

"Carrie," he said, approaching me steadily, "What's wrong?"

I looked at him intolerantly, "You think I'm mentally challenged or something don't you?" I tried to keep the angry act up but instead found myself holding back tears.

"What?" he actually sounded genuinely shocked, "Of course not! Sure you seem a little unique, but since the last question was the most important and your answer was phenomenal, my colleagues and I agree that you should take the physical test because your heart is definitely in the right place."

"Huh?" I was so happy, I let the tears fall, and soon my face became a waterfall. "Are you serious? Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" my weird habit of bowing had gotten the best of me again.

"Sure," he replied, holding out a hand, "It's clear that you really want what's right, and that's something that's getting harder to find in the younger generations."

I took his hand, and he helped me up. "Really? Thanks," I said, calming down slowly.

"All right now, why don't you dry your face, pull yourself together, and then you can come with me," he said, holding out a tissue.

"Thanks," I said, accepting it graciously, "I'd follow you anywhere."

"What was that?" he asked, looking up from a paper he had been reading.

"Oh, nothing!" I felt my face heating up. Had I actually said that aloud?

(Ky's POV)

"You ready?" I asked, staring directly into Carrie's big brown eyes, through her glasses. She nodded. "All right, come this way then." I led her to a large field, usually used for training. "What type of weapon do you use?" I asked, not sure what to expect.

"Two weapons," Carrie replied, holding two fingers up right by her face (PEACE! ), "A staff, about five feet long should do, and of course, a trusty katana!" she smiled.

"All right then," I turned to a rack full of weapons, "Here," and tossed them to the waiting girl.

She deftly caught the staff in her right hand but then fell over trying to grab the katana with her left. (Obviously right-handed.) "Oh, I am SO uncoordinated," she muttered under her breath.

"That's all right," I said, "as long as you're ready to fight."

"Fight?" she questioned, dusting off her skirt, "Fight whom?"

"Fight me."

(Carrie's POV)

"What? You?" there was no way I could fight someone who I already admired, "You? Ky Kiske?"

"Yes," Ky replied, sounding surprised at my outburst; "It's the standard test for you to fight a full fledged Knight. I won't hurt you Carrie."

"I believe you and all, but why does it have to be you?" I found myself using a whiny tone.

"That's just the rules, I suppose," he shrugged as he replied, "What's wrong with fighting me?"

"Well, it's just," I felt my cheeks turn red, yet again, "I consider you my friend."

"Oh," he still sounded surprised, but then he smiled, causing me to glow a deeper shade of red, "Well, you'll still have to fight me. Just do your best Carrie. Imagine I'm someone else."

"Like a Gear or something?" I tried to think of a way to ignore the fact that I was fighting someone who I already deeply treasured.

"If that works for you, I suppose you can," he was still smiling that blush-inducing smile.

"Mm hmm…" I nodded, trying to regain my composure. I finally felt my cheeks cool back to their normal state.

"Okay then," Ky said, still super calm, "Why don't you stand there," he pointed to a spot, "and get ready to begin," he approached the rack full of weapons.

"All right," _If this is what I have to do_, I thought, _I'll fight as best as I can but… I have a soft spot for this man._

I slowly began to walk towards the spot that Ky had indicated, clutching my weapons tightly. "I'm ready," I said when I finally reached the right spot, "As ready as I'll ever be."

"All right," Ky now stood across from me, holding his own sword at the ready. (By the way, I'm assuming again.) "We'll begin then." He immediately began to charge towards me.

_Oh my God! _I tried to think of what I should do, but I couldn't, I froze. _Looks like I'll just have to do this the conventional way._ I dodged to the right as he whizzed by my left side, raising my katana to block his sideways strike. "Impressive," I heard him say and saw him smile. I blushed, a stupid mistake as then I felt the pain from a jab to my elbow. I smelled the blood flowing from my wound and grimaced from the pain. I managed to ignore the pain and decided that it was time to strike back.

I ran toward Ky, now back at his starting area, weapons at the ready. I flung my staff forward, only to hit his sword. I then drew my katana with my left hand and managed to draw some blood from his side. He jumped though, and managed to dodge a possible critical hit. At least the small amount of blood loss would help by slightly slowing him down.

I heard Ky touch the ground behind me. "Stun Edge!" I heard him scream out.

"What?" I turned around only to see blinding blue light and feel the pain of electricity coursing through me. I screamed but managed to shake it off. I wouldn't drop my guard again.

"Stun Edge!" the process repeated itself, and I saw the blue lightning whisk towards me. Quickly, I spun my staff and held it in front of me, absorbing most of the attack's power. After stopping Ky's attack, I looked forward and began to relax, only to see him running towards me again. I managed to block a series of jabs by reading his moves and quickly moving my katana. However, a sudden searing pain then surprised me in my leg. The smell of blood became stronger, and I realized that Ky had made a quick downward jab while I had been concentrating only on his higher ones. I swung my staff, and he backed away, giving me distance, just as I had hoped. But then he kept backing up! _He must be planning something;_ I thought and slowly began to inch towards him, limping from my bleeding leg. Ky stared me right in the eye, silently challenging me.

I decided then to rush at him. I ran really slowly, trying to ignore the sharp pain coming from my leg. Getting a little closer, I saw Ky's expression change into one of pity. "SACRED EDGE!" that was the last thing I heard before being blinded by bluish light. I thought for an instant and quickly began spinning my staff in order to absorb the attack's power. I spun the staff and began to run forward, pushing myself to run at a normal speed despite my injuries. I held in a scream as I ran through the lightning that Ky had produced trying to ignore the pain coursing through my body, only slightly reduced by the spinning of my staff. After enduring the pain of running through the lightning, I saw Ky, who's expression automatically turned to surprise as I emerged. I used my last bit of energy to run at him, ducking as he swung at me. I jumped back up and pressed my katana against his neck, causing a little bit of blood to trickle from the tiny wound.

"You win," Ky smiled as I put down both of my weapons, exhausted beyond belief. I stood in front of Ky and smiled, exhausting any energy that may have been left in me. I felt myself giving way and falling forwards, my eyes closing as I fell directly into Ky's arms.

A while later…

(Ky's POV)

I sat, waiting. Carrie lay in the bed, still out cold, her wounds now treated. It had been a few hours, and I waited to congratulate Carrie of her victory. I watched and slowly, finally her brown eyes opened and stared up at me.

"Ky?" she questioned groggily, "Did you carry me here?"

"You didn't leave me much of a choice," I smiled, glad to see that she would be fine.

"Oh, I'm sorry-"

"No, it's no problem," I felt bad for interrupting her, but I didn't want her bowing at me again.

"Really? Alright then," she smiled, "What did you do with my glasses?"

"Oh, here," I handed her the blue horn-rimmed glasses she had been wearing, and she put them on, pushing strands of dark brown hair out of her face.

"Thanks!" she smiled, "I can clearly see you now! I didn't hurt you too much did I?"

"Oh, this?" I touched the small scab on my neck, "It's nothing." I wondered if she would willingly have sliced further if necessary.

"So now what?" she questioned, lifting the sheet that had been covering her.

"Well now you're officially a Holy Knight."

"Really!" she shrieked in excitement and jumped up, running towards me, despite the still present bandaged gash on her leg, "Thanks so much!" she then came at me with a flying hug. (GLOMP! )

"Um, Carrie," I nervously said, unsure of how to react.

"Oh, sorry," she let go, her face slightly red, "You don't want me to bow again do you?"

"Truthfully, no," I answered, "It's just…"

"-weird," she finished for me, "I don't know why I do that."

"Don't be embarrassed Carrie. You should just try to break the habit."

"Alright!" she sounded very enthusiastic, "I'll do it for you Ky! I promise!"

_For me? _I wondered, _Oh well, I guess she's just happy._ "Moving on," I continued aloud, "You're in the Sacred Order, but you have to start at the bottom."

"The bottom?"

"Yes. The bottom of the 'corporate ladder' you could say."

"Okay…"

"Well," I sighed, "You start your job as errand girl tomorrow."

"Errand girl!"

"Yes. You know, you bring the tea, food, and do other errands," I couldn't help but feel bad, "It's not up to me Carrie."

"But why?"

"They say you're 'too rash,' you rush into things. They also say you don't pay enough attention."

"They?"

"My superiors. Don't worry, I'll be overlooking you, and if I suggest it, you'll get promoted."

"So, you're my boss?"

"Basically. Well I have to go, I'll see you tomorrow," I turned to leave.

"Hey, wait!" I stopped. "I have a question."

"Yes?" I turned to face her.

"Do I get a jacket?"

"Oh, this? Sorry, but not yet."

"Aww," she hung her head, "All right then!" she was suddenly happy again, "I look forward to seeing you again!"

"As do I Carrie," and with that I left.

(Carrie's POV)

I thought over what had happened as I left the building. I'd made it! Sure, I'd have to be an errand girl for a while, but with Ky as my boss I'd surely get a promotion soon.

Ky… every thought of him made my cheeks redden and my heart quicken. _What's up with that?_ I thought.

I remembered things that other girls had told me. "You don't know what love is? It's when you find a guy, your guy, the one that makes you feel different inside, that's love."

That was something I remembered learning, I thought I'd never feel it, not having much contact with men all my life. But… this, this feeling I got from Ky Kiske, could it be this… this 'love'? -END STEP 1

Note: Aw, what a fuzzy ending! Yeah, I don't know what caused me to write something so fuzzy but here it is! So anyway, please review and have mercy on my first ever big fight. Oh and for those of you who were wondering: Yes, I myself do truly love Ky. Hmm, I think that's all for right now so please click on that little button! -HB


	2. First Day

A New Knight

Step 2: First Day

By: HitokiriBattosaiess

Note: Hello! I started writing this at camp so as not to keep you guys waiting to long (since I'm lazy and prone to writer's block). And because of all the confused people's comments I guess I'll start changing the points of view every chapter (so it doesn't change in the middle of something). I'm glad I got at least one review since I'm new to this kind of fanfiction. Anyways, off to the story! This chapter will be completely in Carrie's POV.

"..." means talking. means thinking. (…) means random author's notes.

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I walked through those same doors, the ones I felt like I'd just left. I was prepared to do my job, no matter how stupid it was, to show Ky that I was responsible. I spotted him near the entrance, and he began to wave. I smiled and waved back, happy to see the wonderful man.

"Hello Carrie," he said once I finally reached him, "It's nice to see you again."

"Hello Sir Ky," I smiled and felt my face redden.

"Sir?"

"Sorry, it just slipped out," I got even hotter, "You don't mind, do you?"

"Oh no," he was still smiling, "I've just never been called that before. Anyway, I'm here to show you the area where out squad works so that you can start your job."

"Oh! Thanks!" I was determined to be the best errand girl ever (sad).

"Come this way then," he led me to an office like area with tables and some desks that held many unfamiliar faces. "Actually..." he sounded as if he was thinking something over, "would you like a tour? There isn't much to see, but I'd be glad to show you around."

"Really?" I was ready to do anything to spend more time around him, "I'd love to go with you Ky!"

"Um… okay then, follow me," he led me out of the area. "Over there," he motioned towards offices much like the one we had just left, "are the other squads' offices. You probably won't ever go there unless you're taking something to someone." I nodded, obsessively hanging onto his every word. "Now we're going to go outside."

"Outside?"

"Yes, by the training area we used yesterday."

"Oh," that placed didn't necessarily bring back good memories.

"Well, here we are," I stood, staring blankly at the place where we had fought just yesterday.

"Wow..." I was speechless, if you looked at it the right way, the training field became a field of mostly green grass, only dead in spots that had been stepped on too often. Looking around, I noticed that some trees were destroyed and guessed that they must have been obliterated by Ky's attacks from the previous day.

"It's nice like this, isn't it?" Ky broke the silence, "When it's peaceful."

"Yeah," I smiled, nodding, _'Almost as nice as you Ky.'_

"Um," he said, suddenly sounding nervous, "Would you like to see my favorite spot out here?"

"Oh!" I blushed, of course, "I'd love to!" I smiled the brightest smile I could have mustered.

"Follow me then," he led me to a wooded area, and we eventually came to a huge tree, teeming with life.

"Wow…" I couldn't help but repeat my earlier exclamation, though this time my mouth hung open.

"So, what do you think?" Ky asked, motioning towards the tree.

"It's amazing!" I continued to stare, as this just about matched Ky's level of amazing-ness.

"Yeah," Ky sat at the tree's base as he spoke. "I come here a lot when I'm stressed or when I just feel like relaxing for a bit."

"That sounds nice," imagining him in relaxation made me smile.

"You're free to come here whenever you want as well," he said, getting up.

"Oh," I blushed, "Really? I'd love to!"

"Well, you're free to come at anytime, even if I'm here, it's fine with me," the last part was added hastily, "just don't tell anyone, it's our secret."

"Oh, sure!" I was SO happy at that moment, "So, now what?"

"Now, we're going back," he sounded disappointed to be leaving the special place, "It's just about time for lunch."

"Oh…" somehow I wasn't too hungry, "Um…" I thought of how to ask, "Sir Ky, would you mind if I ate lunch with you? Because you're the only person here that I know," I sounded pretty pathetic and hopeless.

"Oh," he seemed surprised, "You can go home to eat if you feel uncomfortable here."

"Oh, no. I live alone anyway so I'd really enjoy you're company," I looked at him hopefully, "if that's okay with you, of course."

"Oh…" he seemed surprised (again), "All right then, where would you like to go?"

"Well..." I was grateful that he would let me choose where to go, "How about we go to where I work?"

"Work?"

"I have a part time job," somehow this embarrassed me, "I'm a waitress."

"Really? Where are we going then?"

"It's just a little place, so I hope you don't mind. It's called Cranberry Jam's (which is REALLY dinky at this point in time since it's pre-GGX)."

"All right then, let's go," and thus I led him to Cranberry Jam's, a place where I'd spent most my free time for the past five years, not only working but also helping the wonderfully nice Miss Jam. (YAY 4 JAM!)

"Well, here we are," I led him to a table in the small, humble restaurant.

"Oh, hi Carrie," Miss Jam said when she came to our table, "What would you two like?" she asked, eyeing Ky and handing us menus.

"Oh, may I have some tea please?" Ky asked, extremely polite.

"Sure," Jam scribbled it down, "Carrie?"

"Uh… I'll have some tea as well," somehow that just slipped out, _'I hate tea!'_

"All right," Jam eyed me strangely, knowing that I'd much prefer coffee, "I'll come back to take your orders," and with that, she left us alone.

"Well," I didn't even look at the menu, "I'm not really that hungry, so I think I'll just have some rice (white rice is my favorite!). What about you Sir Ky? All of Miss Jam's food is heavenly."

"I think I'll have some shrimp fried rice with beef (beef is cool!)," he said, closing his menu and placing it on the table.

"Here you go," Miss Jam stopped at our table, "two teas. Now, what would you like to eat?" There was silence for a while, "Well?" Miss Jam broke it, eyeing us strangely, "one of you should order if you want any food."

"Oh, well I was going to let Sir Ky order first," I said nervously.

"But it's common courtesy to let the lady go first," Ky replied.

Once again there was silence. "Order!" Jam demanded, "or no food for you!"

"I'll have some white rice," I said quickly, knowing that I should take Miss Jam's threat seriously, "That's all, thank you."

"I'd like some shrimp fried rice with beef please," Ky said politely, as usual.

"See? That's not so hard," Miss Jam smiled, "I'll come back with food soon," and with that she left us alone once again.

"So," Ky took a sip of tea, "you live alone?"

"Yeah," I picked up my teacup and lifted it to my mouth, " I have for a while," I touched the cup to my lips, fearing the tea's taste, I sipped a bit and then spit it back up into the cup, "Yeah," I put the cup down.

"Carrie, what's wrong with your tea?"

"Huh? Oh," I looked down at my cup; "It just tastes… weird."

"Oh," Ky looked at my cup, "Well maybe there isn't enough sugar or something. If you'd like, I could switch it with mine."

"Oh, no thanks," I said, trying to prevent him from drinking my saliva.

"No, I insist," he said, switching the cups and taking a sip from my saliva-full cup, "It tastes just fine to me though."

"Oh," I said staring down at my cup, once his. I picked it up and sipped, gulping it in disgust. _'Wait a second,'_ I thought, _'I've heard of this before. Isn't it…an indirect kiss?'_ My eyes widened in realization and I quickly gulped down the tea, making sure to put my mouth on the right spot.

"Wow," said Miss Jam, now standing by our table holding a tray of food, "You must have really liked that," she smiled as she set my rice in front of me, "Would you like some more?"

"No thanks," I replied, ready to stuff my mouth with rice in order to rid it of the tea's taste.

"All right," still smiling, she set Ky's food in front of him and picked up my empty cup, "Enjoy the food!" then she left us once more.

"I began shoveling the food in my mouth (think Ash or Goku) as Ky tried a bit of rice and beef. "Wow," he said after swallowing a few bites, "You were right, this food is absolutely delicious!"

"Mm, hm," I said between bites.

"So," Ky said, staring at me as I gobbled up my rice, "You said you lived alone, right?"

"Yeah," I shoved the last bits of rice in my mouth and burped. Ky gave me a weird look. "Oh, sorry…" my cheeks glowed bright red.

"How did you come to live alone?"

"Oh," I sighed, "I guess I'll tell you since I am done eating. Please make no comments until I'm done, okay?"

"Oh, sure," he smiled, "I'll eat and listen."

"All right," my cheeks warmed at his smile, "Here goes… When I was five, Gears killed my parents, so an all-girls orphanage picked me up and took care of me. Around then, I heard of the Holy Knights, I've wanted to join since then. When I was 13, I met Miss Jam and started working for her, and she's also showing me how to cook, for free of course. Around that time, the orphanage got too cramped up so they built an apartment complex for all of the older girls. That's where I live. And that's the story of my life, in brief of course."

"Oh," Ky said, finishing his food, "You've led an… interesting life."

"Yeah," I smiled, "May I be excused for a bit?"

"Oh, sure," Ky smiled back at me, once again causing me to go red.

(A few minutes later cuz Carrie went to the bathroom)

I walked back to our table, ready to leave and I found… Miss Jam all over Sir Ky! "Oh, Ky-sama!" Jam said, her arms wrapped around him, "You're so sweet!"

"Um, Miss Kuradoberi," Ky said nervously, "Carrie's back, so I'll be going now."

"Oh, okay," Miss Jam let go of Ky and stood up to face me, "but first, you must pay the bill, 11 world dollars."

"Oh sure, that's not a lot," I reached into my pocket to find… no money!

"If you don't have any money, I would be happy to pay the bill," Ky said, noticing my surprised expression.

"Oh, that's not the case at all! Of course I can pay, I did invite you after all. I just need to speak with Miss Jam for a minute."

"All right," Miss Jam led me to the kitchen so that we could talk, "You are broke, aren't you?"

"Yeah… but that's not all. What were you doing with Sir Ky?"

"We were just talking, I introduced myself to him. He's really nice."

"Yeah, but you were flirting with him, Miss Jam! You do that way too often!"

"Well, you never cared before," she smiled at me, "Maybe you're… jealous?"

"No!" I blushed, "Just don't flirt with Sir Ky because he's my new boss."

"What? I thought I was your boss!"

"I have a full time job now too. I'll still work here."

"All right, but you're going to work for free for a while to pay for this."

"Sure. Thanks Miss Jam," I bowed respectfully, like she'd taught me, "See you soon." With that, I went back to Sir Ky. "Okay, we can go back to work now, Sir Ky. Everything's been taken care of!"

"All right, then let's go."

(A while later, back at the Holy Knights' HQ place)

"I have to get to work now Carrie. We've been out, so I'm going to have to catch up. Why don't you go talk to the other members of our squad and see if you can get acquainted?"

"Um… because I'm not that good with people," I blushed nervously.

"Well, you seemed good with me. Go ahead. I have to go now," and with that, he left me in a room full of tables were unknown faces sat and unknown voices chatted and laughed. It felt bad to be alone. Everywhere I turned I saw groups of friends, joking together. I felt hopeless and alone.

I moved to sit by myself when I heard a voice, "Hey, you!" I turned to see a man sitting by himself, brown hair falling into reddish eyes as he rested his chin on his hand, his elbow on the table, "Yeah you, girl!"

"Huh?" I looked at him nervously, "What is it?"

"Sit down," he motioned towards the chair across from his.

"Um… all right," I sat down and somehow sensed that I would regret this someday. -END OF STEP 2

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Note: Guess who just appeared? Anyway, besides that being obvious, I have other things to say. Sorry for taking so long but I was choir camp for a week, where I started writing this by hand every chance that I had. And then, when I started typing it my computers started being retarded so I had to type the beginning three times! (Sob, sob) So yeah, here it is, finally! Let me just tell you though, that since I want to write semi-long chapters it may be a while since the next one is up (it took me two weeks to write the first chapter). Hmm… that's all for general readers!

To the Reviewers:

Sin the Dark Priestess- Wheeee! I have a new buddy! Your story rocks (at least compared to mine cuz I have low self-esteem)! Keep writing and keep praising me cuz I need it to keep going! Oh, and since you gave me milk and cookies, I give you chips and soda!

SkyDragonSlifer3k2- Sweet, a Yu-Gi-Oh related name! (I was once obsessed with Yu-Gi-Oh) Thanks, your review made me feel particularly fuzzy inside! Keep reading! You can have some chips and soda, too!


	3. Sardonic Truths

A New Knight

By: HitokiriBattosaiess

Step 3: Sardonic Truths

Hello! I hate to say it but this fic will be on short hold after this chapter. Not because I don't have ideas, but because I've decided to try to revive all of my old fics that have been just sitting there for a year. And maybe redo my first ever fic (for the third time) because whenever I post it, it ends up with almost no reviews (that fic eventually crosses over with this one). And I'd also like to revive my almost unused fictionpress account. I have plenty of ideas for this though and I'll probably alternate between updating this and updating my other stuff. All right, that's all my talk for now.

Disclaimer (Why haven't I done this yet?): I don't own Guilty Gear. If I did all 7 of my original characters would be playable and they'd have the theme songs that I wrote for them. However, I do own Carrie (as well as Katsumi, Skarz, Akuma, Elysia, Britney, and Mai; not that they matter right now. (Yes, I'm bragging)) So, here's the story!

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(This is new… Sol's POV)

"You're new here, aren't you?" I said to the girl now sitting across from me.

"Um, yeah," she said, shifting nervously, "How could you tell?"

"Easy, you're alone and you seem unhappy about it," I looked up to see big brown eyes, behind blue horn-rimmed glasses, widen

"What!" the girl demanded loudly, "Are you calling me hopeless or something!"

"What!" I yelled back, "What the hell's wrong with you! I was just trying to quell your 'loneliness'!"

"Really?" her expression changed to one of disbelief.

"Yeah. So do you want to be my 'friend' or not?"

"Well, okay!" she smiled now, sticking out a hand, "My name's Carrie Goldman!"

"Hm," I shook her hand, "I'm Sol." (WHEEEE! SOL IS HOT!)

"Well, I am new around here," Carrie seemed all too happy now, "So, you're my second friend here and my second friend who's a guy!"

"Wait… I'm only the second guy you've met," this sounded way too weird, "ever?"

"Um… yeah."

"What kind of sheltered life have you led!"

"Well, I was raised in an all-girls' orphanage," she said matter-of-factly.

"And you're how old?"

"I'm 18. So anyway," she hastily changed the subject, "I'm the new errand girl."

"Errand girl?" I couldn't help but give her a strange look.

"Yeah," she looked down glumly, "I know it sounds stupid, but it's always been my dream to join the Holy Order," she spoke quickly, not taking any breaths.

"It could be worse," I said, trying to prevent any more sulking.

"No way," she shook her head defiantly, "my jobs the crappiest around, and I haven't even started yet."

"You think this why?"

"It felt so stupid to tell you that I'm and errand girl," Carrie pouted, "because there's no pride in that!"

"There actually is one crappier job in the Holy Order," I grinned, "garbage person."

"Seriously?" she cocked her eyebrow suspiciously.

"Yeah, you seem," here came the explanation, "the people around here like to make themselves out as very nice. So, they hire just about everyone who applies for a job here."

"How do you know this?" she continued eyeing me suspiciously.

"I have my ways. Anyway, they give out crappy jobs to people they don't necessarily want to hire."

"What?" she glared at me, "Now you're just trying to make me feel bad!" she got up, about to leave.

"Wait," I grabbed her wrist, pulling her back into the chair, "I'm not done yet. The people that just plain suck are made into garbage people because they'll quit within a week. Errand people are said to have a reasonable amount of potential but one major flaw, or something," I looked back at Carrie, who was now staring back at me, wide eyed, "Did they tell you anything?"

"Well I was told that I was 'too rash'," she replied shamefully.

"I kind of figured that out," I smiled, teasing her, "since you start screaming all the time," I grinned at her angry glare, "for no reason."

"And I suppose you're not rash!" she yelled, with somewhat of a reason, "Huh, Sol!" she stood up, looking down at me.

"Jeez," I pulled her back into the seat, "They probably want to teach you how to listen too."

"Oh, shut up Sol," she grumbled, sounding defeated, "But seriously, why don't they tell you that you're 'too rash'? You just yell right back at me!"

"I don't know," I thought this over, "It's probably because I kick too much ass."

"What kind of reason is that?" she sighed, "You're being completely ridiculous!"

"It's true," I looked at her annoyed expression and smiled, "Didn't you have to fight someone to get in here?"

"Well, yeah," she shrugged, "It was somewhat of a challenge."

"Who did you fight?"

"Huh?" for an instant, she wore a blank expression, "I had to fight Sir Ky."

"Sir?" I laughed, shaking my head, "So, you fought Ky Kiske?"

"Yeah," she nodded solemnly.

"There's no way you could've beat him. He's supposed to be one of the best and most promising people here."

"Well I won."

"Then he obviously wasn't fighting with his full strength. Yeah, that's gotta be it. There's no way you could beat Kiske."

"How do you know?" she glared at me again, "You haven't seen me fight."

"Yeah, but he uses a magical sword (Wheeee, Fuuraiken!), which I doubt that you have."

"Whatever," she scoffed, turning her face away, "It's not like you can prove it anyway," she said, trying to hide the pain in her voice.

"Actually," I looked across the hallway knowing that it was the perfect time to expect a certain someone, "Aha, right there!" I pointed out Ky Kiske out to Carrie as he cam our way.

""Sir Ky!" her eyes grew huge and bright at the sight of him.

"Hey, Kiske!" I gestured towards him and he cam towards our table.

"What is it Sol?" he asked, sounding impatient.

"We," I gestured towards Carrie, who beamed when Ky looked at her, "would like to ask you a question."

"Hello Carrie," he said, suddenly ignoring me, "What brings you and Sol together?"

"Oh, nothing," she smiled brightly at him, also ignoring him, "He just started talking to me."

"Well, I hope he hasn't said anything to offend you. Sol can be very difficult at times."

"Oh shut up!" I yanked Ky's arm, getting his attention. "Here's my question: When you fought Carrie, did you use your full strength of not?"

"What?" Ky gaped, apparently not understanding.

"You know what I said," I prodded, "Be honest."

"Carrie?" he looked towards her again.

"I guess a real answer would be nice Sir Ky," she looked up at him and spoke in a sweet voice.

"Well," Ky began slowly, "I could never fight a beginner with full force. I limited my attacks and left small openings to check if you could find them."

"So it was really just another test then?" Carrie gaped at him.

"Yes," he sounded a little ashamed, "But you passed. It's my job to assess these things."

"Yeah," Carrie smiled nervously, "I understand. I should have expected that. You are a guy, and you're older than me and-"

"Actually," I couldn't help but cut her off, "Ky's only 16."

"Seriously?" she sounded genuinely shocked, "But Sir Ky just seems more… mature than a 16 year old."

"Oh," Ky said, strangely turning pink, "Thank you Carrie."

"Naw," I shook this off, "It's just that you're too immature Carrie."

"Sol," she glared at me, again, "And what, you think you're mature? How old are you anyway?" she demanded. "You've gotta be older than me," she mumbled.

"Oh," I thought this question over, "I'm… 26."

"What?" Ky gave me a look, "You told me that you were 28!"

"Hm?" I cursed myself for making such a stupid mistake, "All right," I quickly covered it up, "I lied just now."

"Why?" Carrie and Ky chorused, giving me the same look.

"It's obvious," this was so embarrassing, "It's better for a woman to think you're younger. It makes a man seem more appealing."

"What?" both of them again.

"Why would you want me to think that you're appealing?" Carrie continued the questioning.

"Well, do you see any other girls around here?" this was getting annoying.

"I guess not," she replied nervously.

"Anyway," now Ky spoke, clearly trying to change the subject, "The day's just about done, and I'm sure you haven't done anything Sol."

"There isn't anything to do around here anyway," I shrugged, "Get me some Gears to kill if you want me to do something."

Ky sighed, "Carrie, I managed to talk to some higher-ups and convince them that you're worthy of field work."

"Really?" Carrie brightened, "Thanks so much!" she jumped up and hugged him.

"Sure," Ky said awkwardly.

"Oh, sorry!" Carrie backed away, turning red.

"Please come see me early tomorrow so that I can get you a uniform."

"Sure," she smiled, "I'll come whenever!"

"Then I'll see you tomorrow Carrie," he dismissed her, "I'd like to speak with Sol, alone."

"Oh," she sounded surprised, "Well, goodbye then Sir Ky! Bye Sol! I hope to see you again!" she grinned.

"All right, see ya!" and then she left. "So, what is it?" I glanced at Ky.

"Since the two of you seem to get along," Ky began nervously, "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind me making Carrie your partner. Since it's so hard to find someone you approve of."

"So you want to dump her on me?" I shook my head, "Why can't she be your partner?"

"Well," Ky's nervousness grew, "I may be getting promoted soon, to a point where I won't need a partner. I don't want to pick her up and then have to dump her on someone else."

"Hmm…" I considered having Carrie as a partner, "Well she's fun to annoy, and she seems interesting. I guess… I'll do it. I was gonna have to get a partner sooner or later anyway."

"Right, and better sooner than later," Ky agreed. "I'll let her know tomorrow. You won't regret this Sol." -END STEP 3

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It took me forever to write this! Jeezus! Anyway, I will be trying to write my other stories. I'd really appreciate it if you took a look at them! (I'm plugging myself) And if anyone has any ideas for this, I'd love to have them cuz all my ideas are for later on in the story when it will eventually get serious. Let me now in your reviews, okay? And now for notes to the reviewers!

**Sin the Dark Priestess: **Thanks for your reviews! I'm sorry for nagging you and giving you really long and probably annoying reviews. Keep writing your stuff and keep reading mine!

**D.G. Arrow: **YAY! Thanks for inviting me to read your fic. I really liked it! I look forward to reading more of your stuff in the future.

**SkyDragonSlifer3K2:** Thanks for the encourgement!

OK, that's it! Please review and keep on reading! Ja ne!


	4. Enter Mariah

A New Knight

Step 4: Enter Mariah

By: I-Want-A-Piece-Of-Gan-Ning

Note: I changed my name! HitokiriBattosaiess has been my name for like a year so… Anyway this is my name since I'm a Dynasty Warriors person. I'VE GOT DYNASTY WARRIORS 5!

Anyway, this chapter will introduce a new character that was actually created by my friend Tatsumi! Don't forget: "…" talking, '…' thinking.

Disclaimer/Claimer: I didn't create Sol and Ky, Daisuke did. I didn't create Mariah either, Tatsumi did. I only created Carrie.

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(Carrie's POV)

I was fresh and ready for another day as a Holy Knight. And of course to see Sir Ky again!

"Hello Carrie," said a voice behind me.

I turned around, "Hello Sir Ky!" I couldn't help but emit a bright smile.

"Well why don't you come with me," Ky began to walk; "There's something I want to tell you."

"Kay!" I skipped happily behind Sir Ky until we came to a seemingly empty office.

Sir Ky opened the door and we were greeted by another familiar voice, "Hey," Sol looked up from the chair he had been occupying.

"Oh, hi Sol," I said cautiously to the semi-friendly, semi-angry man.

"Sit down," Sol motioned towards a chair in front of him which I hesitantly sat in.

"Okay," Ky said, moving towards a chair next to Sol's. "Now, we've agreed to give you a promotion."

"In other words Ky got the higher-ups, who love him, to promote you."

"Shut up Sol," Ky gave Sol an angry look, "So… you get to be Sol's partner."

"Really!" I couldn't help but shriek in happiness, "Oh, thank you so much!"

"Sure," Ky said nervously, "We both agreed on it."

"Oh, you guys rock!" I was just SO happy, beyond words.

"Yeah," Sol smiled cockily, "You get to hang out with me now."

"Also," Ky began, and I stopped jumping up and down abruptly, listening, "you can get a uniform now."

"Oh, thank you so much!" without thinking; I jumped up wrapping my arms around Sir Ky.

"Um, sure Carrie," Ky said, apparently freaked out from my hug, "Why don't you go down the hall and wait to get a uniform right now?"

"Uh, sure," I quickly let him go; not believing that I'd hugged him. "See ya then!"

I walked down the hall, lost in thoughts about Sir Ky. I found the right door and mindlessly opened it.

"What the hell is your business, wench!"

I jumped up from the sudden demanding voice. "Um… what?" I replied nervously, trying not to freak out.

The girl who had just yelled at me blocked the door, wearing an irritated expression. She placed her hands on the hips of her short skirt. "I said, 'What is your business!' Tell me now!" I couldn't speak, so after a while she did, "Wait… you're not a Knight are you!"

"Yes!" I replied, happy to be recognized as such, "I'm Carrie Goldman and-"

"NO WAY! YOU ARE FAR TOO GIRLY!"

"Girly?"

"Yeah. Just like my fruit loopy fiancé. (More Disclaiming: May I say that Tatsumi wrote some of these lines, not me.)"

"Um." Fiancée? What was going on?

The girl sighed, apparently easing down, and shook her head. "Hmm," she mumbled to herself, "Oh boy… What to do with Ky… hmmmmm."

"Huh?" My mind jumped up at her mention of Sir Ky. "What was that?"

"Just thinking about my girly fiancé," she said bluntly.

"Fiancée?" I thought silently, worried, "Sir Ky?"

"Yeah, he'd probably get along with you, being so girly and all."

"Wait…" my mind was spinning, jumbled, "Did you just say that," I took a deep breath, afraid of her response, "That Sir Ky is your fiancé?"

"Yeah," she replied, "It's a long story."

"Mm," I said trying not to react with my thoughts, 'WHY! WHY! WHY!'

"So… you know him, huh?" she gave me an interested look.

"Yep!" sat down, one seat between us just in case. "He's a really nice person."

"Geez," she was silent for a moment, "You like him don't you?" an evil-like grin sat on her face.

"Huh?" I felt my eyes grow large, "No I don't." 'I don't like him, I love him.'

"Really?" She looked at me, clearly doubtful, "You sure about that?"

"Mm, hmm," I nodded and turned around to hide my blushing face. My mind went racing, trying to think of how to change the subject.

"So," that girl started slyly, "What's your position?"

"Oh, I've just been promoted," my voice came out full of pride, "I'm gonna be Sol's partner. Do you know him too?"

"Sol? Oh I definitely know him," she now sounded interested again, "I'm Ky's partner, by the way."

"Really?" my voice went higher as I tried to hide my jealousy.

"Yeah," she grinned again. "You're name's Carrie, right?"

"Yep! I'm Carrie Goldman!" out came my usual happy-sounding introduction. "What's your name anyway?"

"Mariah," she paused once again, grinning evilly, "Mariah Kiske," something told me that she was trying to rub that in.

"Kiske? I thought that he was your fiancé! Don't you have a maiden name?"

"I've forsaken it. (The Truth: We couldn't think of one.)"

'Forsaken it to make me mad!'

Just as that thought left my head, the door in the waiting room opened revealing a middle-aged looking Knight. "Oh," he said looking towards me, "Miss Goldman, I presume."

"Oh, yeah."

"I see you've met Mariah. She can be difficult, but she's strong and committed to justice."

"Yeah, yeah," Mariah waved her hand carelessly, "Tell her what you want."

"Well both of you can come in now."

After going in we were asked to describe what we wanted our uniforms to look like, of course they had to follow a basic pattern; what colors we would like; and also, what weapons we used so that they could be custom made.

After a lot of explaining, I finally left the room, fully uniformed. I chose a uniform resembling Sir Ky's but with the bottom reaching only to my knees and without sleeves. I also wore blue boots that came to my knees and blue fingerless gloves that went up to my elbows. I stared down at myself, marveling at the blue and white outfit.

"A rip-off of Ky's outfit, eh?" came a now familiar loud voice.

"I picked this because it suits me," I turned towards Mariah who now wore what looked like a short white dress draped with something purple (I can't describe!), purple arm warmers and plain tan boots that went up to her knees.

"Well, I tried to be creative," she motioned towards her purple and white. "Come on, it's time for lunch," she grumbled.

"Wait," I thought over what she had said, "you want to eat with me?"

"Actually, I was going to eat with my lovely fiancé, but I'm sure he'll be happy to know that I've made a friend!" she grinned at me evilly again, "So, you coming?"

"Well…" another meal with Sir Ky would be wonderful, but what about Mariah? 'Maybe… I can… I'll figure out just how close they are!'

"Hey!" my thoughts were cut short by an impatient Mariah, "Make up your mind or I'll just leave you!"

"I'll go, but I have a question."

"Yes?"

"Can I invite Sol?"

"Interesting," she thought far more quickly than I had, "sure." –END OF STEP 4

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End Note: Next time we get to see the four main characters (so far) interact! YAY! I don't know how long it'll take me to come up with it, but I already have a couple ideas… so R&R, and I'll see ya then! Ja ne! (no more notes to reviewers! \/\/ )


	5. Strange Torture

A New Knight

Step 5: Strange Torture

By: Jam-Kiske

Note: Yeah… I haven't updated any of my fics for literally two years I think… Gomen! bows apologetically But… I'm going to try to do the best I can from now on! Especially with this story as I have so much planned for it! The next chapter has been previously written as well so hopefully (if I get some reviews) I can type it up and post it pretty soon… Also yes I changed my pen name again…hopefully for the last time as it's now the name I use everywhere…

Disclaimer: Sol and Ky not mine. Mariah not mine either.

Claimer: Carrie mine! ()

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(Carrie's POV)

And so Mariah dragged me around as we went looking for Sol. "Where the hell is he?!" she demanded, looking down at me.

"I don't know," it came out a barely audible squeak.

"Well we'd better find him," she growled, "Ky's waiting for me!"

"We should check the cafeteria," the thought of a waiting Sir Ky inspired, "considering it is lunch break and all."

"Fine," Mariah scoffed, glaring at me for pointing out the obvious fact she'd overlooked.

And sure enough just as we entered the cafeteria, we saw Sol, sitting alone at a table smoking a cigarette, "Hey," he said between puffs as he caught sight of us.

"Hi Sol!"

"Hey," Mariah gave him a weird look, "Get your ass up. You're coming with us to a picnic."

"A picnic?!" Sol gave her the strangest look, "Why the fuck would I want to go to a picnic?!"

"Because it'll help you get to know your partner better," Sol raised his eyebrow at Mariah's answer, "And it's free food for your lazy ass!"

"Fine," Sol sighed getting up, "Wait," he stopped, "Is Ky gonna be there too?"

"Of course," Mariah said sounding falsely sweet, "He is my fiancé after all."

"Then hell no," Sol sat back down and resumed his smoking.

"You have a problem with my fiancé?"

"Well yeah. He's frickin perfect according to everyone. It's annoying."

"You're just jealous aren't you?"

"And why the hell would I be jealous?"

"Many reasons, anyway, what would if I told you she wanted you to come?" Mariah motioned towards me.

"Well…" Sol considered this, "Do you want me to come with you?"

I nodded and after a while I could finally speak, "Of course Sol. It would be wonderful to get to know you considering we're to be partners and all."

"All right fine," he stood up, "Oh, and Carrie?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't sugar coat your sentences when you talk to me."

"Huh?" We had now begun walking.

"Don't sugar coat," he sighed, "'It would be wonderful,'" he mocked, "Just talk like your normal self, sheesh."

"How do you know she's just not that overly sweet in reality?" Mariah asked, a tone of cruelty hanging on her words.

"Cuz she's yelled at me," Sol's reply came quickly, "Plus I can tell."

"Well she's just been quiet to me," Mariah smirked, "and nervous. She must just be scared of me."

"Hmm… maybe," Sol looked at me quickly, "Are you scared of Mariah, Carrie?"

"Well," I took a deep breath and quickly decided to stand for myself, "I don't see why I should be scared of Mariah. She's really nothing more than an irritating bitch." That ended up slipping out somewhat unintentionally.

"Nice," Sol grinned, strangely patting my head, "To the point and also true."

"Fine," Mariah gave me an evil look. "I'll tell you what I think of you then. You are nothing more than a stupid immature whiny little girl and I know what, or rather who, you're after, and it's not happening."

I'd promised myself that I could take whatever she told me, but upon hearing her last comment I froze in mid-step and felt the tears well up in my eyes.

Upon noticing this Mariah just kept walking, having accomplished her goal, "And you're also a crybaby I see."

As Mariah continued to walk away, I gave up all efforts to control myself. I let myself fall to the ground and become a sobbing mess.

"Shit," I heard Sol, who I'd completely forgotten about, mumble, "Get up," he now loomed over me and pulled me up by my arm, "Come on, I don't want to have to carry you." He led me over to a spot at the edge of the woods. "No one should be able to see us here, so you can cry, if you have to. I'd rather you didn't though."

"Sol," I finally said, sniffing and wiping away tears, "why are you helping me?"

"Because we're supposed to be partners. That shouldn't just apply to work. I'm stuck with you, and I'd rather be stuck with an annoyingly happy girl than with one who's moping. Plus, Mariah's a bitch."

"Thanks," I weakly smiled, my face still red and streaky.

"Sure. What was she talking about anyway?"

"Huh?"

"When she said she 'knew who you were after'?"

"Oh… I," I felt my face redden as I thought about Sir Ky, "It's nothing."

"It can't be nothing," Sol finally sat, his face now across from mine, "not if it made you cry so easily."

"Well… it's a personal thing Sol," I thought if something to say, "It's something Mariah really shouldn't know."

"So she guessed?" I nodded, "What if I guessed?"

"No!" I exclaimed immediately, "Don't!"

"Why?"

"It's just something really personal… a girl thing you could say."

"So… from Mariah's words… and what you just said… I'm guessing you've developed a thing for someone, haven't you?"

"I…" my face reddened and I immediately hid it in my hands, "Just stop Sol, please."

"Well," Sol grabbed my chin and gently pulled my face up until our eyes were level, "Just be careful and try not to get too depressed. Now get up, before Mariah starts making up shit and feeding it to Ky."

"Oh," the mention of Sir Ky reminded me of where we had been going, "Alright." I slowly stood up, wiping the remnants of tears from my cheeks. "I'm ready!" I smiled at Sol as he grabbed my arm.

"Good. It's nice to see you smile," he started to walk, dragging me with him, "this way."

After a while, Sol slowed down, and Sir Ky and Mariah came into view, seated on a picnic blanket. "Oh," I heard Mariah, sounding disgusted, "Here they come now."

"Hello Sir Ky!" I smiled at him sitting across from him as Mariah glared at me.

"Hello Carrie," Sir Ky smiled at me, "it's nice to know that you've met Mariah."

"Yes, I've met Mariah," I grinned falsely, "She has a very, er, colorful personality."

"Hey," Sol plopped down next to me.

"Hello Sol," Ky said, sounding a bit irritated, "Mariah told me that you chased her here… and threatened to rape her."

"What?!" Sol exclaimed, with good reason, "That's such bullshit I can't believe that you'd believe it!"

"Mariah?" Ky looked at her.

"Well," Mariah said, smiling with a false sweetness, "I had to say something to excuse those two. I didn't want the truth to slip out," at this she covered her mouth, "Oops!"

"The truth? What is it Mariah?" Ky asked, falling quickly into whatever Mariah was planning.

"Well truthfully," Mariah gave me a quick look, just enough to convey to me just which truth she had in mind, "Carrie, well she… hmm, let me think of a way to put this," she slowly turned her gaze to me.

"Please," I mouthed silently, on the verge of tears, "don't tell him."

"Have a sandwich Carrie," Mariah said, out of nowhere. She handed me a sandwich. I looked down at it to see a note attached to it. It read:

Carrie,

If you don't want me to tell MY FIANCÉ, Ky, how you FEEL DEEPLY for him, you have to do a little something FOR ME. I'll find something for you to do and tell you later. If you don't do whatever I decide on I'LL TELL. If you don't want him to know, just play along.

Best wishes,

Mariah Kiske

I looked up at Mariah, angered by the sarcasm of her note.

"Hmm?" she looked up at me questioningly.

I nodded, showing that I agreed to her condition of blackmail, as I had no other choice.

"Well," Mariah spoke cheerfully, looking right at Ky shamelessly, "Carrie here needed to use the bathroom. We had already started walking. So since we were outside I asked her to well… go by a tree to save herself the trouble of returning. So she went ahead, and Sol… well I told him to respect her privacy, but he wouldn't listen to me, to put it simply and respectfully."

"What?!" Sol began again, "I-"

"Sol?!" I began, cutting him off at just the right moment, "How could you be so insensitive?! We're clearing this up in private!" with that I grabbed Sol's arm and he followed me away to another of the many secluded areas of the forested region.

"So what's going on here?!" Sol rightfully demanded.

"Well…" I had to truly think of a way to explain this without showing how pathetic I had been, "Mariah kind of… well… she blackmailed me. I had to lie so that she wouldn't tell Sir Ky."

"Why are you so worried about him knowing?" Sol grinned, "He'd probably be nicer about it than me anyway."

"Well… I…" I struggled to find a way to explain myself without telling him about my feelings for Sir Ky, "I don't want another person knowing the truth."

"You don't want anyone messing with you about it?"

"Yes Sol," I sighed, "you're going to do that, aren't you?"

"Maybe," he grinned, grabbing my arm, "Let's go back now."

"Yeah," I let him lead me back, lost in thought about what would happen if Sol ever guessed the truth.

"Hello!" Mariah smiled widely when we returned, "Everything cleared up?"

"Yeah Mariah," I said, trying to hide my anger, "Everything's all right."

"Hmm," Sol glared at her and picked up a sandwich that he began to eat, clearly ignoring Mariah.

I sighed as the air became silent. "So…" Sir Ky said, clearly trying to ease the growing tension, "Are you enjoying your time here Carrie?"

"Huh?" I looked up fro the sandwich I had begun to nibble on, "Oh…" I blushed, realizing that Sir Ky had spoken, "What was that?"

"What he was trying to say," Mariah broke in, her brash self, "was, do you like it here or not?"

_Not when you're around,_ I thought. "Well…" I thought of a way to word my thoughts, "This is a great place! Everyone's nice to me… well most people anyway." The last four words were quickly added as Mariah looked up at me.

"It's good to know that you're happy here," Sir Ky said, not noticing the animosity growing between Mariah and me.

"Thanks!" I smiled and blushed, knowing that Mariah was probably glaring knives at me. "I do hope I can be here for a while."

"I hope you can stay with us too Carrie," Sir Ky smiled sweetly, "And we should be here, unless the war gets worse, god forbid."

"Yeah," I smiled back at him, still feeling some heat on my face. _I almost forgot about the war. I'm so happy here. I hope it doesn't get too bad._ I continued to eat, awaiting the next conversation. There was some silence as we all ate, save for the sound of Sol noisily gobbling up the food.

"So," he was finally the next to speak, "Who made these sandwiches anyway?"

"I did," Mariah said, immediately giving him a dirty look, "Do you have a problem with them?"

"What the hell's in them?"

"Food obviously. I made them with tender, loving care you know."

"Loving care?!" Sol stared at Mariah, the sandwich he had been holding dropped to the ground.

"Yeah," Mariah looked at him with a somewhat disgusted expression on her face, "with love for Ky, my fiancé, you idiot."

"Hmm…" Sol picked up his sandwich, turning it in his hands and looking at it, "The best thing you could think to make was sandwiches?"

"It's a traditional picnic food Sol," Mariah countered, picking up a sandwich, the last one, "Would you like this last sandwich Ky?"

"Oh," Sir Ky, who had been quietly watching the two argue, seemed hesitant, "I'm not all that hungry anymore so maybe I'll just eat some of it… if that's okay with you Mariah."

"Why of course!" Mariah smiled, handing Sir Ky the sandwich, "You just eat what you want, and I'll gladly eat the rest!"

"Thank you," Sir Ky smiled, taking the sandwich and starting to eat it.

"Well," I suddenly broke in, jealous of the attention Mariah was getting from Sir Ky, "I'm still hungry… so maybe I could have some of that sandwich?"

"No," Mariah immediately said, "It's not my fault you got here too late to enjoy more of my delicious sandwiches."

"But I…" I fell silent, knowing that it would be stupid to cry for something like this.

"It's all right Carrie," Sir Ky spoke, handing me the sandwich, which he had take a few bites of, "I'm not all that hungry, and Mariah had more to eat than you so it won't hurt her if you eat this."

"I…" I immediately blushed, "Thank you Sir Ky!" I smiled and began to eat the sandwich, starting with the part that he had bitten.

"Sure," Sir Ky replied, smiling his sweet smile, "We'll have to get going soon though, so finish that up quickly."

"Mmhmm," I nodded and made sure to eat slightly faster, but not too fast, to preserve the peace here.

"Hey!" Mariah screamed at me, destroying the calm that I had been enjoying, "Hurry up or at least get off the picnic blanket so I can pack it up!"

"Alright, alright," I gulped down the last bit of sandwich, "You don't have to yell at me about it." I then stepped off the blanket that Mariah promptly began to put in her picnic basket.

"You can head back boys," she said, closing the basket, "I need to speak to Carrie privately."

_What?!_ I thought as Sol and Sir Ky said goodbye and left.

"Have you forgotten?" Mariah pulled me to my feet.

"What?" I rubbed my wrist where she had pulled me up.

"The note I wrote to you," she glared at me, clearly agitated.

"Oh," I said, suddenly feeling horrible.

"Yes, 'Oh,'" Mariah smirked, "And I've come up with the most entertaining idea for you."

I gulped, frightened of what she might have in store for me. "Um…" my throat suddenly felt dry as I feared what Mariah would say next, "What is it?"

"Well," she grinned, "I'd like you," she stopped, clearly on purpose, "You are paying attention, right?"

I looked up at Mariah who smiled cruelly, "Yes," I squeaked, feeling tears form in my eyes.

"Good. And why are you freaking out? I didn't even tell you what you're going to do yet!" she chuckled, clearly enjoying my frantic state, "What I want you to do is tell Sol that you are in love… with him."

"What?!" I thought, my face turning red, I was filled with rage, yet I couldn't move at all.

"Now go," Mariah ordered, picking up her picnic basket.

I just stood, in a petrified daze, unsure of what to do. –End of Step 5

End Note: Wow that was a long chapter… the next one will be extremely short though, I warn you ahead of time. Also, I need to disclaimer the idea of Carrie having to tell Sol that she likes him as my friend Yumi (who also created Mariah) came up with that. So yeah…next chapter shall be short and dramatic! Look forward to it please! R&R!


	6. Quick and Unsure

A New Knight

A New Knight

By: Jam-Kiske

Step 6: Quick and Unsure

Firstly: Thankies to my first reviewer in years. Ya know who you are I had this typed up and saved for over a year and I was starting to think I'd never get to use it... xD But here it is and it's up due to your request. Once again, thanks a lot!...anyway my thumb is literally busted the skin has dented into a hole... since I just played Core for the first time in ages so... I don't feel like typing any more. Everything after this was typed over a year ago... so enjoy!

Note: This is a short one as I stated before so sorry about that (the last chapter was insanely long though so I think it evens out). That's all I really have to say this time…

Disclaimer: Sol and Ky belong to Ishiwatari Daisuke and Mariah belongs to my friend Yumi.

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(Carrie's POV)

Mariah walked away, leaving me dazed. She turned around just as she was almost out of sight, "Well what are you waiting for?!" I jumped at the sound of her voice, "Go tell him now, or I'll be doing the telling." With that, she and disappeared from my sight.

_What should I do?_ I thought frantically. _If I… do what she said, I'll be lying. Is it really worth it?_ I started to walk, knowing that either way I needed to get back to the offices. _Well…_ I thought, _I have to do it…because Sir Ky would think it not right, him being with Mariah and all… How did he end up with Mariah anyway?_ My thoughts strayed as I tried to forget what it was I was about to do. My mind wandered though in the back of my mind frantic, frightened thoughts grew. I picked up my pace, looking down at the grass, too scared to do much else. Soon I was running, trying to stop myself from crying. I was frantic when I hit something, closing my eyes on impact.

"Hey," I heard a familiar voice say, "Watch where you're going."

I gasped at the sudden noise and looked up, "Sol?!" I jumped back, realizing what this meant I had to do.

"Yeah," Sol looked at me, seeming confused. "What is it?"

"Nothing."

"Alright come on then. I came to get you anyway," he started walking, clearly wanting me to follow, "You were taking too long.

"Wait Sol…" I knew it was now or never, "There is something I need to tell you."

"Yeah," he turned around, "What is it?"

"I…" I couldn't bring myself to say it, "Could we go somewhere a bit more… private?"

"If you want," he sighed, "It's that important then?"

"Yeah," I followed him slowly and silently to the same area we had been in earlier.

"So what is it?" Sol asked, leaning against a tree.

"Well I…" I looked down and suddenly felt my face grow hotter, a feeling I'd only had before when around Sir Ky. "It's just that I…" I stopped again feeling ready to cry but knowing that I couldn't, "Well I…" I felt myself blush deeply and tried to think of how to put it, figuring that the simplest way would be most efficient, "I… Well… The truth is (_Not really_) I," my face was so red, I could feel sweat dripping down it as well as on my clenched hands, "I," I took a deep breath, on the verge of tears, "I'm in love with you Sol."

His eyes widened, and he seemed to be frozen in shock. I could feel myself about to break down so I turned around running, to get away from Sol as quickly as possible. –End of Step 6

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End Note: Short as promised! But I had it in mind that way… I also thought that Carrie stalling and making this longer was in character for her. The next chapter might be short too but I'm not completely sure as that one isn't prewritten just yet. R&R please!!


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